The Fall
by InheriWriter
Summary: When they denied him the power and honor of a Rider, who would've dreamed of what happened next?
1. Unforgiving

**Unforgiving**

"Please!" screamed an insanely high pitched voice.

"No," said Oromis in his authoritative voice. "You have had your chance to be a Rider. Did you follow the doctrine of avoiding direct combat until you were fully trained? No, you blatantly ignored that rule when you decided to go on you 'adventure'."

"Please! Oromis-elda, I promise! I won't do anything like that again! Just let me have another chance, another egg…" Galbatorix's voice broke into a sob as the word 'egg' rolled off his tongue.

"Let the Council convene," Vrael, the leader of the Riders, said sagely. Then, in a whisper, he said, "I say that he gets one time, just one more time to prove himself. If another dragon will hatch for him, he shall have it. Just look at the boy, look at the sadness he has had to suffer. Sure, he made the wrong decision in going off to fight the Urgals, but he is still so young, I believe that he is still capable of changing his ways. What say you, do you all agree with me?"

"No, I do not agree that we should allow him a chance, even if he swears to undergo the process of penitence."

"And why, Oromis, is that? Vrael knows his own pupil best, just as well as you know Brom and Morzan, who are both as close as brothers," questioned Tenga.

"Perhaps the rest of you do not see it, but what eats at his heart is not sorrow, it is madness and insanity," Oromis stated adamantly. "I do not mean to criticize your methods, Master Vrael, but Galbatorix has an unusual talent of swaying others to his cause, just as he did when he convinced his friends to go with him into the Spine. I make my decision out of safety for the other young ones."

"Wise words, you speak. I must say that I am in agreement with Oromis," said Tenga.

"Well said. Now, shall we?" said Vrael. Turning back to the courtroom, he said "All who are in favor of giving Galbatorix another chance at being a Rider, raise your hands and say 'I agree' in the Ancient Language."

Galbatorix looked up hopefully, his lips in a lop-sided, maniacal grin, his eyes overly large in his eagerness. But no one, not even Vrael made the slightest twitch of movement, except the slow rise and fall of breathing.

He broke, and the uncontrolled anger and insatiable hatred that boiled up within him exploded like a dragon's roar. "HOW CAN YOU DO THIS TO ME?" he screamed. "I THOUGHT THE RIDERS HAD SYMPATHY FOR THEIR OWN KIN, FOR ALL WHO HAVE DONE NO WRONG IN ALAGAESIA! WHAT HAVE I DONE TO ANGER YOU, MASTER VRAEL?!"

"I am sorry, Galbatorix, I truly am," said Vrael. "But by losing your dragon, you have lost the honor to be called a Rider."

"I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU!" Galbatorix raged as lunged toward the council, intending to slaughter them all for denying him the one thing he had ever truly wanted: power.

"Letta!" shouted one of the council, binding Galbatorix together in place. He writhed and struggled, but to no avail.

"Remove him from the room, cast him in the Hadarac, he is too dangerous to contain," said Tenga.

Glaring with eyes that gleamed with uncontained hate, malice, hostility, animosity, resentment, outrage, and ire, the former Rider, imbuing his next words with all the energy he had, said, in a soft, raspy voice that caused shivers to run up everyone's spines, "Know this, my former comrades, I shall have my revenge, and the day will come when the Riders shall cower and fall before my wrath."

**A/N:** I sort of noticed there were hardly any stories talking of how the riders fell, so I decided to try my hand at one. Tell me what you think of it...


	2. Raid, Kill, and Capture

**Raid, Kill, and Capture  
**

The gates, as promised, were unlocked and open. Slipping in, quickly yet quietly, none of the guards noticed the shadow that moved through the gilded bars, as Galbatorix slinked past Illirea's supposedly impenetrable defenses.

_How ironic that on such a peaceful night, the wheels of wicked machinations are about to be set in motion,_ thought Galbatorix maliciously. Though dressed in a black cloak and layered with many spells of invisibility, the fugitive refused to abandon caution and remained in the shadows of the many buildings lining the main street. With each silent, purposeful step, the one who had been banished from the order of Riders came ever closer to regaining that very title.

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Huthvir, named by his parents for the sharp, formidable weapon wielded by those of Durgrimst Quan, reached within his consciousness for the barrier that separated him from the river of magic that flowed just behind the mental wall. Just as he was about to penetrate it and release the spell that would extinguish his light lamp, the small, black bundle beside him on his bed jabbed him sharply in his mind.

Huthvir froze in mid-action. _What? I need to get my sleep else I face Oromis's wrath, _he demanded exasperatedly of Pandora, his week-old dragon. The only reaction from the small creature was innocent blinking. Then suddenly, without any hint of forewarning, he crashed and melded his consciousness with Huthvir's, forcing the young 13- year old boy to view the world through the hatchling's eyes, which had incredibly sharp night vision because of the black irises that surrounded its pupils. The light of the moon illuminated everything outside of his bedroom, shining particularly brightly, however, upon the smooth, flowing cape of a figure moving swiftly and deftly towards the entrance to the castle of Illirea. Huthvir would not have been able to see this stranger had it not been for his dragon's proficient night vision.

_Who is that person creeping towards the gates?_ came Pandora's question.

_How would I know? _Huthvir replied, peering over the edge of his dusty windowsill. _I say we go check who it is, just in case._

_Good idea, _agreed Pandora.

Snatching Mor'ranr, 'Peace', his solid black Rider blade, off of its perch on the top shelf of his dresser, Huthvir opened his bunkroom door, fervently thanking the gods above that it was not as creaky as the doors to the bedrooms of his fellow Rider apprentices. Pandora bounded softly past Huthvir on padded paws into the hallway beyond, then waited for his Rider to step out silently and lock the door. Moving along the cold, stone floor, Huthvir encountered no one along the way to the entrance hall of the castle.

Finally, he staggered into the grand, high-domed room. As he stooped over to catch his breath, a strong arm clutched him roughly around the neck. Before he could cry for help, a wad of cloth was stuffed into his mouth. He could hear similar things being done to Pandora based on the muffled squeaks emanating from the dog-sized creature by his feet.

It was only when he was wrestled mercilessly to the ground that he was able to see who his captors were.

_Morzan? Galbatorix? What are you doing here? _Huthvir cried out with his mind.

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Galbatorix could not believe his luck. Not only had the plan been executed _perfectly_, with Morzan already at the gates waiting patiently for him, but their prey had foolishly wandered right into their hands.

_What's the meaning of this?_ came the bewildered voice of the young Rider, whom Galbatorix recognized as Huthvir, one of the apprentices in the class below his and the son of Tenga, one of the Council who had denied him his wish. A cruel smile twisted his lips as he pointed the tip of his mud-brown sword to the throat of his victim.

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_This is the end of me, Pandora. We had a good time together, even if it was only a month, _came the resigned voice of Huthvir, his beloved soul mate.

_NO! This not the end! It cannot be! _

_Do not mourn me when I die, my dragon. Live on and be strong. _

_NO!!! We have not even gotten to fly together! _While Pandora wailed on the inside, he could only whimper softly on the outside as the murderer-traitor-Galbatorix drew back his blade and drove it through his Rider's throat.

_We will fly together some day, Pandora, be it in heaven, or be it in hell, I promise, we shall meet again. Now...Live on...Pandora..._


End file.
